Baseball Writer

According to Ronald Blum, a writer for the Associated Press who covers baseball, the following information is presented.

Phoenix — Marcus Semien’s two-run triple and three-run homer powered Texas to a 10-run lead by the third inning, Corey Seager hit another long home run and the Rangers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-7 on Tuesday night to move ahead three games to one in the World Series.

The Rangers’ hitters dominated the Diamondbacks’ pitchers, scoring 10 runs and making history as the first team in the Series to have back-to-back five-run innings. Seager hit his third two-run homer of the Series in the second inning, followed by a home run from Semien in the third and another from Jonah Heim in the eighth.

The Texas team has achieved a perfect record of 10 wins and 0 losses while playing away from home during the postseason. They are now only one win away from claiming their first championship in the 63-year existence of the franchise, which began as the Washington Senators in 1961.

Nathan Eovaldi will attempt to finish the third wild card Series on Wednesday evening against Zac Gallen, in a repeat of the Game 1 matchup.

“It’s the usual routine for us. Our best player is now on the pitcher’s mound,” Semien stated. “He’s been exceptional throughout the playoffs. He has that competitive drive. I’m looking forward to seeing him perform. He’s been anticipating this moment all year.”

Out of the 49 teams that have had a 3-1 lead in the past, 42 have ended up winning the World Series. The most recent team to come back from a 3-1 deficit was the Chicago Cubs in 2016 against Cleveland.

Texas successfully scored 10 runs, despite there being two outs, by overwhelming the Arizona team who had to use four pitchers to get just eight outs. The first run was brought in by a wild pitch from Miguel Castro, and a mistake from Gold Glove first baseman Christian Walker resulted in five additional runs for Texas in the third inning. This was the first error committed by either team during the Series.

“We were completely caught off guard by this. Our pitchers have been performing exceptionally, and our defense has been making great plays. Suddenly, everything fell apart for us in just two innings,” stated Torey Lovullo, manager of the Diamondbacks.

Before the 2022 season, two All-Star middle infielders named Seager and Semien joined a team as free agents for a combined total of $500 million. In the Series, they have both earned six RBIs. Seager, who has hit three home runs in the Series, is the only shortstop to do so. In his last five games, he has hit four home runs, including during the AL Championship Series. If he is named MVP of the World Series, he will join Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, and Reggie Jackson as the only players to win the award twice.

Travis Jankowski, who took the place of injured hitter Adolis García in right field, got a single in the second inning and a two-run double in the third inning, marking his first at-bats in the series.

During a pregame meeting, García, who was named the MVP of the AL Championship Series, addressed the group.

“He has played a significant role in our team’s efforts. We are determined to win this game for him,” stated Seager. “It took a lot of courage for him to speak up. We understand his desire to be out there with us and it motivated the team.”

Andrew Heaney, a 32-year-old southpaw who has played for five different major league teams, earned the victory after giving up four hits in five innings. The team then used six relievers, with José Leclerc closing out the game and securing the final out.

In the fourth inning, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. scored a sacrifice fly for Arizona and hit a three-run homer in the eighth off Chris Stratton. In the eighth, Tommy Pham also had a sacrifice fly, and in the ninth, Gabriel Moreno drove in two runs with a single.

The atmosphere at Chase Field was full of celebration as the roof remained open for the second consecutive evening. While some attendees sported Halloween attire, others began expressing their disapproval during the second inning.

Due to a lack of starting pitchers, both teams decided to use bullpen games instead, which was described by Lovullo as a “chess match” that he was excited for. Unfortunately, this strategy did not work well for the Diamondbacks.

In the second inning, Josh Jung hit a double against pitcher Joe Mantiply. Castro then entered the game and allowed García to hit a game-winning home run in the 11th inning of the first game. Jung moved to third base on a groundout and was able to put Texas in the lead when Castro threw a changeup that bounced off the plate for a wild pitch.

Semien hit a slider that landed in fair territory about 18 inches away and then bounced into the left-field corner, earning him a two-run triple and giving his team a 3-0 lead. Castro, with his head down, was met with boos as he left the field. Later on, Seager connected with Kyle Nelson’s slider, sending it 431 feet to hit a video board above the right-center wall for his sixth home run of the postseason.

Semien stated that they aim to create a similar level of offense, particularly in important games, in order to silence the opposing crowd and aid Heaney’s concentration while playing away from home.

During the initial World Series, which saw three consecutive error-free games, Arizona’s defense faltered at a crucial moment. In the third inning, with one out and after singles by Jung and Nathaniel Lowe, Luis Frías took over as pitcher and Heim hit a hard grounder to Walker. Although he had the opportunity for a double play, Walker dropped the ball while trying to throw to second.

Jankowski hit a double and Semien smashed a fastball high and inside over the left-field fence for his first home run since Sept. 27.

Semien mentioned that it had been a while since he had jogged around the bases. He admitted to having experienced similar struggles in the past, but acknowledged that it was unfortunate timing. Despite this, he remained determined to continue working hard. He shared that he had made some adjustments at the plate, focusing on hitting the fastball and improving his ability to read the slider. As a result, he had a successful performance tonight.

Before hitting a home run off of Ryne Nelson, Heim had gone 0 for 12.

TWO-OUT THUNDER

In the first game of the 2007 World Series against Colorado, the Boston Red Sox were the only team to score more than 11 runs with only two outs.

STREAKING

Arizona’s Ketel Marte had two hits, extending his record postseason hitting streak to 20 games.

TRAINER’S ROOM

García (left oblique) and pitcher Max Scherzer (back spasm) were taken off the Texas team after sustaining injuries. INF/OF Ezequiel Durán and LHP Brock Burke were added to the roster, and Burke gave up three runs in the eighth inning. … Seager seemed to twist his ankles while hitting a home run. He was substituted for a pinch runner after hitting a double in the ninth. “I’m okay, I wasn’t hurt,” Seager stated. … In the ninth inning, Rangers rookie Evan Carter was hit on his right pinkie by a pitch.

UP NEXT

In five starts during the postseason, Eovaldi has a record of 4 wins and 0 losses with a 3.53 earned run average. In the opening game on Friday, he finished with a 5-3 deficit after giving up five runs and six hits in 4 and 2/3 innings.

In the first game, Gallen allowed three runs and four hits in five innings. In his five postseason starts, he has a record of 2-2 with a 5.27 ERA and has given up six home runs in 27 1/3 innings.

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Source: wralsportsfan.com